Injuries to Swisher, Gardner concern Yanks' Girardi

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Long term, Joe Girardi said there's not a lot of concern. Short term is another matter.

Two-thirds of the Yankees' starting outfield is hurting, and although it appears as if the injuries to Brett Gardner and Nick Swisher aren't severe enough to cost either player the rest of the season, both sat last night and are questionable for the remaining two games of this critical series against the Rays.

Gardner had an MRI yesterday on his right wrist, and it showed inflammation but no structural damage. Swisher, whose left knee has been sore since Aug. 24 when he fouled a ball off it in Toronto, today will go for his second MRI in two weeks. Swisher, who was not available to reporters before the game, had an MRI taken when the Yankees were home that showed nothing serious.

Still, a frustrated Swisher said after Sunday's game in Texas, "it's not getting any better," and that he felt as if the injury was affecting other parts of his body. Gardner said yesterday he wouldn't have been able to pick up a bat if asked.

"It's a little concerning," Girardi said. "You would think that over time they'll get healthy. There's really nothing structurally wrong, which is a good sign, but short term, it's a concern."

Gardner traces the issue with his wrist back to June 27 in Los Angeles, when he was hit by a pitch. He said soreness has come and gone since then.

"A lot of inflammation has come back," Gardner said of his MRI. "Probably just from wear and tear from playing every day. Pretty much good news that nothing was messed up, just a lot of inflammation where the tendon goes into my wrist. So I'll rest it today and hopefully be swinging a bat tomorrow."

Even if he can swing, it's unlikely that Girardi will start Gardner tonight, though he was available last night as a defensive replacement or pinch runner.

Gardner sat for two games after being hit but was back in the lineup July 1 and played 18 consecutive games.

"It hasn't been that bad," Gardner said. "At times it went away. It just never really healed up. I never had any rest or time off so it never completely healed."

Gardner was optimistic the cortisone shot at least would allow him to swing a bat today. He said he received a cortisone shot in his shoulder earlier in his career and felt significantly better within 24 hours.

"It went from feeling really bad one day to the next day you woke up and everything's normal again," Gardner said. "So hopefully that's the case with this."

Swisher's case is more perplexing. He sat Aug. 25 but played six straight games before being removed with knee pain after one at-bat Sept. 2 against the A's. He missed two straight before pinch hitting Sept. 5. He started Sept. 6 through Saturday in Texas before showing up Sunday morning in pain.

"There's nothing structurally wrong, so it's just trying to get this thing healed," Girardi said. "There were times where it's felt better than others. Short term I'm worried about it because I don't know how long it's going to take. But I don't perceive it to be two weeks or anything like that."

Austin Kearns started in left last night and Greg Golson, a September callup, started in right. (Swisher batted for Golson in the eighth and grounded out.) Probably not the lineup Girardi thought he'd be starting a week ago for this series.

"Those are two guys who have played extremely well for us, but you still have to find a way to get it done," Girardi said. "It's baseball. You're going to have people nicked up. You just have to find a way to get it done."